Metalworking Guide - Shape Sheetmetal

1/27Over 1,400 students have learned to bend metal from Lazze. Could we?

We've secretly always wanted to be one of those guys who can walk into his shop, spend a few hours with fresh steel, and walk away with a custom panel that actually fits. But there's just no way artistically declined stumblebums like us could ever create on the level of professional builders, right? Master shaper and former machinist Lazze Jansson insisted it just isn't so and that he could prove it if we'd be willing to spend three days at his metal-shaping school. Jansson developed his own English wheel, electric bead roller, and shrinker/stretchers that are superior to many on the market and put together beginner and advanced classes to teach customers, fabricators, and average Joes his techniques.

Jansson refers to his school as Metal Dreams, his premise being you can create those things you've always wanted to. The closest we've come to actual panel fabrication is creating rough patches for floorpans with a hammer, a pair of pliers, and a vise. Suffice it to say, we're starting from square one--but with high hopes.

2/27After an introduction of the basic uses of the English wheel, bead roller, and shrinker/stretcher, it was time to get hands-on. Our first project was a cowl panel for a '33 to '34 three-window coupe like the one in the foreground. Jansson cuts the basic shape for you, but then it's up to you. Yes, that's how the class started, and we were sure we were sunk.

We'll freely admit we were pretty intimidated the first day, especially when we noted two of the four students in the class were JF Launier and Sean Calverly of JF Kustoms. These guys are accomplished, high-end custom builders, already having racked up a Goodguys '08 Trendsetter of the Year award as well as West Coast Custom of the Year for their Ridler Great 8-achieving '55 Chrysler wagon, dubbed R'Evolution. Yet they were there to learn from Jansson. We had to be in way over our heads.

But that just wasn't the case. The first thing to know is Metal Dreams is less like a classroom and more like a private tutorial. Jansson never has more than five students at a time so he can give everyone tons of personalized one-on-one instruction. There are projects to choose from, and Jansson has guidelines and templates laid out for you to work from--but you're not spoon-fed, either. He instructs and guides, then turns you loose to learn by doing, which is, as we discovered, the only way it can be done.

All in all, it's a terrific balance; you have free reign to work on your own as much as you like, but Jansson is always right there to get you back on track if you stray away and to help you break bad habits. He'll also show you why whatever incorrect method you're using won't accomplish the goal. And most intriguing of all, you can create pieces that apply to real cars and could actually be used on one.

The Metal Dreams logo is made up of a silhouetted English wheel that doubles as an exclamation point and represents the epiphany Jansson says his students receive once they realize metal shaping is not some black art that requires an innate da Vinci-esque creative aptitude. "Some will be better than others," Jansson tells us. "But I've taught more than 1,400 students, always with success. This is something you can do."

And you know what? He was right. After three days of hands-on work, we walked away with projects to be proud of and a much deeper understanding of some of the techniques and tools masters such as Craig Naff and Marcel DeLay use to create automotive artwork. But by far the most valuable thing we took away was the self-confidence that we can create pro-level parts and panels with our own hands--and that will stick with us and change the way we look at any potential project.